The Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ) achieved a historic victory in the national parliamentary elections held on September 29, defeating the two major parties that have dominated Austria’s political system since World War II—the center-right Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP) and the Social Democrats (SPÖ).
Nearly doubling its vote share compared to the 2019 elections, the FPÖ secured a record 29.2% of the vote, winning 58 seats out of 183 in the National Council, becoming Austria’s strongest political force. This result surpasses the party’s previous peak under Jörg Haider in 1999. Meanwhile, the ruling ÖVP suffered a decline in support from 37% to 26.5%, and the SPÖ recorded its worst-ever result, with only 21.2% of the vote, dropping to third place for the first time. These outcomes signal a profound structural shift in Austrian society, reshaping the nation’s political landscape.
The Austrian electorate unequivocally rejected the left-liberal-green establishment, giving strong backing to the FPÖ’s platform centered on strict anti-immigration policies, border security, crime reduction, tackling the high cost of living, advocating for peace with Russia, opposing military aid to Ukraine, and insisting on Austria’s military neutrality. The FPÖ’s victory is part of a broader wave of successes for national-conservative movements across Europe and follows their win in Austria’s European Parliament elections in June.
However, the leading center-right ÖVP decided to ignore voters’ mandate and refused coalition talks with the FPÖ, despite FPÖ leader Herbert Kickl receiving a clear popular mandate. Austria’s President Alexander Van der Bellen, for the first time since the establishment of the Second Republic, declined to assign the mandate to the party with the most votes—FPÖ—citing that “no one wants to form a government with them.” As a former leader of the Austrian Greens, Van der Bellen appeared unwilling to grant an opportunity to Kickl, who has expressed non-interventionist views on the Ukraine conflict and aligned himself with Viktor Orbán. The Brussels establishment also seemingly pushed for the creation of a “cordon sanitaire” against the FPÖ to prevent another strong conservative government with an anti-globalist agenda in Central Europe, following Hungary and Slovakia.This marks a significant moment of political realignment and contention in Austria.
Although The Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ) achieved a historical victory in the parliamentary elections on September 29, the Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP) and the Social Democrats (SPÖ) have a narrow majority of 92 seats out of 183, leading to the need for a third partner, NEOS the Liberals, in this case. This coalition reformulates the previously delegitimized grand coalition and pushes Austria further toward left-liberal policies, disregarding the expressed will of the electorate.
With support from Austria’s president and the EU establishment, Austria is being steered into a government that bypasses the electorate’s desire for change, creating a democratic deficit and a legitimacy crisis. Unlike other European conservative parties that had to compromise with the establishment, Herbert Kickl of the FPÖ remains steadfast, resulting in his ostracism. This system-driven exclusion is perceived as being at odds with public and democratic interests.
The controversial decision to exclude the FPÖ from government has very much appeared to backfire. Polls by the Lazarsfeld Society, for exampel, show the FPÖ’s support rising to a historic 33%, up by 4% in just one month. This surge reflects public backlash against the president’s choice to grant the mandate to ÖVP leader Karl Nehammer, despite his historic defeat.
Nehammer’s rejection of the FPÖ appears even more puzzling, as existing coalitions between the ÖVP and FPÖ govern several Austrian regions successfully. Instead of forming a strong conservative government, Nehammer is pursuing a “coalition of losers”, which has sparked significant public concern about undermining democratic norms.
Therefore, the price for the irresponsible establishment of a political “sanitary cordon” was immediately evident. The ÖVP (Austrian People’s Party) recorded a further decline of 3%, dropping to 23% support, while the Social Democrats (SPÖ) fell from 21% to a record low of 19%. It is clear that the democratic deficit created by initiating illegitimate negotiations to form a government—one that does not reflect the preferences of the electorate and rejects representing its significant and growing national-conservative segment—leads to further declines in the popularity and legitimacy of the traditional political entities, complicating the formation and stability of such a government.
Confirmation of this public sentiment did not take long.
The Austrian Freedom Party (FPÖ) achieved a historic victory on November 24 in elections in the southern state of Styria. Approximately 35.6% of Styrians voted for the FPÖ, marking a record result for the party and nearly 20% more than in the previous election. The leading regional party, the Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP), is expected to secure around 25%, almost 10 points less than its previous result. The Social Democrats (SPÖ) now hold only 21.1%.
Support for the Greens has almost halved since the last election, with only the NEOS (Liberals) remaining unchanged at 5.8%. This is the first time since World War II that the ÖVP and SPÖ will not be able to form a government in Styria.
Mario Kunasek, FPÖ chairman and former Austrian Minister of Defense, stated:
“This is the best result the FPÖ has ever achieved in Styria. The Styrians have given us enormous trust today, for which I am sincerely grateful. This is a historic success for the Styrian FPÖ, thanks to the right direction we have followed in recent years. With topics like healthcare, migration, transportation, and the economy, we focused on the real issues and put forward the right solutions. We accept the result with humble responsibility.”
The president of the Austrian Freedom Party (FPÖ), Herbert Kickl, also addressed the election results, stating:
“Today, the people of Styria made history: for the first time, they established the FPÖ as the strongest political force in the state parliament, achieving the best result in history and continuing the liberating wave of renewal. I would like to sincerely thank all voters and congratulate the election winner Mario Kunasek and his outstanding team of the Styrian Freedom Party on this great success.”
On the other hand, ÖVP candidate Christopher Drexler blamed the party’s leadership, stating:
“Federal politics influenced this election as never before. During numerous conversations with voters in the districts, most people did not understand why the federal president did not grant the FPÖ the mandate to form a government.”
Since then, it appears that the FPÖ has continued to grow in popularity.
Herbert Kickl also commented on the ÖVP’s decision to form a coalition with leftist parties instead of the FPÖ, stating:
“It remains to be seen whether this further defeat in the Styrian elections will give the reasonable forces within the ÖVP the courage to permanently correct the leftward drift of [Austrian Chancellor] Karl Nehammer…”
The strategy of stigmatization and labeling the FPÖ with terms like “far-right” or “neo-Nazi” not only fails to yield results but also cannot conceal the Austrian people’s loss of trust in the pro-war and woke status quo. This trend is not limited to Austria but is evident across Europe, as seen in recent elections in Romania. Obviously a Newe Europe is being made, a new basic consensus on the conservative values to change the system.
The peoples of Europe are turning their backs on the treacherous pro-war elites, seeking peace, economic prosperity, and national identity—an unmistakable testimony of the current political developments in Austria.
